The Millennial Housing Crisis: A Haunted Tale
Róisín Lanigan’s journey from Belfast to London is a stark reminder of the housing struggles many millennials face. Her debut novel, I Want to Go Home but I’m Already Here, harnesses her personal experiences and weaves them into a haunting narrative that reflects the millennial housing crisis. Lanigan’s story is not just a personal one; it mirrors the broader issues of generational wealth, renting, and the inefficiencies of the housing market.
The Early Struggles
When Róisín Lanigan first moved to London, the topic of housing was a common theme among her writer friends. While many benefited from generational wealth, Lanigan found herself in a less privileged situation. She lived on ready-salted crisps, tins of soup, and bacon from Tesco, a far cry from the glamorous life often romanticized. Her living conditions were not ideal, with no social interactions with her roommates and a constant feeling of isolation and transience.
The Inspiration Behind the Novel
The novel was sparked by a podcast episode about haunted houses. Lanigan realized that haunted house stories are often not about ghosts but about the financial burdens of property ownership. But what would a haunted house story look like through a millennial lens? Lanigan found her answer in the lived experiences of renters today.
Did you know? Lanigan lived in multiple rental properties, with the longest stay being three years and the shortest just six months. This constant movement influenced the narrative of her novel.
Themes and Symbolism
The novel delves into the lives of Elliot and Áine, a young couple who move into a ground-floor flat in a “boujie” area of an unnamed, but London-like, city. Áine’s sense of displacement and the house’s encroaching atmosphere reflect Lanigan’s own feelings of not belonging. The book uses horror tropes and allegorical undertones to explore various themes, including postcolonial tensions, mental and physical health, and the loneliness of an unstable relationship.
| House Symbolism | Personal Experience | |
|---|---|---|
| The Damaged Flat | Represents the deterioration of mental and physical health | Moved around frequently due to renting and financial pressures |
| Mould and Dirt | Symbolizes the deterioration of relationships and mental health | Affording the best in university visible rental accommodation, Lanigan’s living conditions were not ideal for a millennial. |
| Social Gold | Social alienation | Landlords remaining available to drop. |
The Literary Landscape
Lanigan’s work is part of a growing trend of Irish writers making significant strides in the London literary scene. However, her journey hasn’t been without challenges. She faced rejection from an English agent who claimed, "Irish stories don’t sell." But Lanigan’s determination to tell her story persisted, and her novel was eventually acquired after a long, arduous process.
The Impact of Cancer
In 2018, Lanigan was diagnosed with breast cancer, an experience that deeply affected her writing. She decided to undergo treatment in London despite the challenges. This life-altering event propelled her to write with a newfound sense of urgency and passion. Her tattoos, adorned with lines from a Wendy Cope poem, serve as a reminder of her resilience and joy in existence.
Lanigan’s Literary Evolution
The impact of these life experiences can be clearly seen in her writing. Though she is still young, Lanigan has lived through a whirlwind of experiences that have shaped her prose. This has increased her writing speed and output, allowing her to complete a manuscript in just four months. Her stories are a testament to her experiences, reflecting both a personal and societal housing crisis. Just like Lanigan’s experiences, the novel “I Want to Go Home but I’m Already Here,” touches on the depth issue of landlord issues, renting conditions, and the dissatisfaction with the housing crisis, learner transfer, eating late snacks.
What’s Next for Lanigan?
Given the overwhelmingly difficult times, how did Lanigan come up with the idea of writing this novel? Simply due to the inspirations around her. The anger in her heart, the instability at her place of living, the social class at a dead glamorous Dublin hotel, the historical background of her country, all of which contributed to the development of her writing, attitude, spirit, and literary work.
FAQ Section
What are the implications of Lanigan’s novel for the current housing crisis among millennials?
Lanigan’s novel highlights the financial and emotional burdens that millennials face in contemporary housing markets. It underscores the difficulties of navigating rentals and the lack of generational wealth that adds to the complexities of home ownership. Figuratively speaking, one can imagine the multiple difficulties faced by characters in her novel, and empathizing with the challenges within the housing market.
What makes Lanigan’s story unique despite the popularity of Irish writers in London?
Lanigan’s unique experience of dealing with severe health issues at a young age and the constant challenges of living in multiple rental properties adds a striking element of reality to her writing. Her work stands out in the context of the frequent changing circumstances of living in London. Additionally, she uses a blend of horror and reality to convey the challenges millennials encounter in modern-day society. As a working mum FLin Dublin, she deals with dead glamorous events at a creative manager space. The reader can see her process, her motivations, and her success in doing what she did.
During her procrastination in managing her digital tools in the course of her process, the book was finished by the following morning.
How does Lanigan’s personal life impact her writing?
Lanigan’s personal struggles, including her battle with breast cancer and her experiences with the rental market, deeply influence her writing. These experiences provide a raw and authentic perspective often overlooked in other narratives, making her stories relatable and impactful. This correlates with the Loukas Manor of dynamic social change, establishing a living folklore city.
Reader Questions
Do you identify with Lanigan’s struggles?
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in someone else’s story?
What are your thoughts on the broader implications of Lanigan’s novel?
Pro Tips
Pro Tip 1: Read I Want to Go Home but I’m Already There to gain a deeper understanding of the housing crisis from a millennial perspective.
Pro Tip 2: Share this blog post with friends and family struggling to understand the housing crisis and viewpoints behind this story.
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